Despite Easing FaceTime Restrictions, Provider Still Deals with Net Neutrality
By Karla Robinson
November 12, 2012
November 12, 2012
- AT&T had previously limited Apple’s FaceTime video chat service to Wi-Fi or customers with new — generally more expensive — shared data plans. The carrier recently announced that it would open the service to more iPhone and iPad users, but digital rights groups are saying AT&T is still violating net neutrality regulations.
- “Net neutrality rules prohibit DSL and cable companies from unfairly blocking services they don’t like and require them to be transparent about how they manage their networks during times of congestion,” Wired explains. “The regulations do allow for certain kinds of mobile network management during periods of congestion, but these cannot unfairly target services that compete with the carriers’ own services.”
- “AT&T in August said that the main reason why it was not breaching the FCC’s net neutrality rules was because the FaceTime application comes pre-installed on the iPhone and iPad,” the article continues. “The company said it was not blocking the app, but that it reserved the right to enforce ‘some reasonable restrictions’ to manage expected traffic congestion of the data-hogging app.”
- Now, AT&T allows the iPad 3 and newer models as well as the iPhone 4S and iPhone 5 running iOS 6 to use FaceTime over cellular networks.
- “But despite the change, Public Knowledge said that, until AT&T begins offering the service on all of its cellular plans like Sprint and Verizon do — including for AT&T customers with unlimited data — the company will be violating net neutrality rules,” Wired writes.
- Public Knowledge and other digital rights groups have threatened to take up the issue with the Federal Communications Commission if AT&T doesn’t open up FaceTime to all plans and all compatible devices.
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